Report: Jonathan Kuminga has ‘warmed’ to the idea of signing qualifying offer

The Golden State Warriors have been in a stalemate with forward Jonathan Kuminga regarding a new contract for a while now. Free agency started months ago and the beginning of the 2025-26 campaign is just over a month away, yet Kuminga remains an unsigned restricted free agent.

With that in mind, though, Kuminga has supposedly “warmed” up to the idea of signing a one-year qualifying offer that would keep him in Golden State. It’s worth noting that agreeing to such a deal with the Warriors would have Kuminga in line to be an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2026.

“Kuminga’s greatest leverage is the one-year, $8 million qualifying offer, attached to an inherent no-trade clause,” Anthony Slater and Shams Charania wrote. “As the summer has dragged on and the discomfort in these negotiations has grown further, Kuminga has warmed further to the idea. The decision to sign it could very well play out up to the Oct. 1 deadline unless either side caves.”

Kuminga’s contractual quagmire has put a halt to the team’s intention to make signings via free agency. Former Boston Celtics big man Al Horford has been linked to the Warriors heavily this summer, and signs point to him going to Golden State already being a done deal. However, Golden State is the only team that hasn’t signed a free agent since the beginning of the offseason.

The Warriors formerly offered Kuminga a two-year, $45 million deal, but he has allegedly made it clear that he’s not interested in such a framework.

Kuminga, the No. 7 overall pick back in the 2021 NBA Draft, was one of Golden State’s best players in its second-round series against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2025 NBA Playoffs. He averaged 20.8 points per game while shooting 54.3 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from 3-point range and brought his A-game after guard Stephen Curry went down.

However, it’s unclear if he will ever get the playing time and usage rate needed to maximize himself as a player so long as he’s playing under head coach Steve Kerr in Golden State. Kuminga never averaged more than 26.3 minutes per game in any of his opening four seasons in the league, and he doesn’t have a clear path to a starting role with Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green holding down the starting forward spots.

It’s obvious why the Warriors would want to re-sign Kuminga, but it’s probably in the best interest of his personal success and development that he plays for a different team in the coming season.